Heidelberg or Rothenburg ob de Tauber?

Susan,

I had concerns before my first trip to Rothenburg, as I'd also heard that it had become very "touristy". I asked Rick's staff for suggestions, and they said that it was still a great place to visit despite being touristy. Therefore, I'd probably stay with Rothenburg. As you mentioned, it becomes a somewhat different place after the hordes of tourists and tour buses have left.

Your children would probably enjoy the Night Watchman's tour, walking the wall and learning about the history (especially related to what happened to Rothenburg during WW-2), the Crime & Punishment Museum and especially Kathie Wolfhart's Christmas store.

Happy travels!

What time of year will you be there? I have been to both places. I used to live closer to Heidelberg, but my mom is from a town very close to Rothenburg, so I am very fond of it from that perspective. I visit Rothenburg every time I go back to visit my grandfather.

That said, I think there is probably a little more to do in Heidelberg, and it has more of a real lived in feel to it- especially with all of the university students. I took my family to both places on our last trip and actually spent the night in Heidelberg. Rothenburg has some great stuff, too, but I don't know that I could spend two nights there. I couldn't spend more than about four hours.

I would strongly recommend Rothenburg over Heidelberg. Other than the interesting castle, I found Heidelberg very " americanized" and was quite disapointed in it....I didnt go there to see Woolworths and Pizza Hut etc. The Night Watchman tour is different and your children would probably enjoy the Christmas Store.

Adult children would probably enjoy the atmosphere of Heidelberg a lot, as it is a big university town. The view from the castle is spectacular. If one gets off that main shopping street, you get away from the tourists of the world.

If there are a lot of Americans there, it might be because there is a large base in both Heidelberg, Mannheim, and Wiesbaden is not far away either. Plus a lot of troops are visiting from Rammstein on their R&R.

For fun reading about Heidelberg, read what Mark Twain had to say about it.

Not sure what would make one German city authentic´ and anotherinauthentic´ (other than perhaps Leavenworth, WA). I also don´t quite understand why Heidelberg gets dismissed as overly touristy. Its main economic function is a university town, whereas Rothenburg wouldn´t exist today without the hordes of tourists traipsing through.

That being said, if your children are within a few years of college age, I suspect they would enjoy cafe-crawling at night through Heidelberg (probably without mom in tow) over the night watchman´s tour of Rothenburg. Likewise, they might enjoy Trier or Freiburg for the same reason.

I'd pick Rothenberg. It's beautiful in the evening just to walk around the town, have a nice meal and some good German wine or beer. But then I much prefer the small German towns to the larger cities.

Castle Colmburg is a great place to spend a night or two and visit RodT. It's only about a 10-15 drive from the castle. The rooms are very nice and the castle is such a unique place to stay especially for Americans who don't see castles dotting their countryside.

Heidelberg was the first "site" I visited on my first vacation in Germany. After Heidelberg I went to Rothenburg. I've never been back to Heidelberg. I have gone back to Rothenburg. I'm not sorry I saw Heidelberg, but I think Rothenburg is as close to a must see as you'll find.

Heidelberg is just OK - nice enough but pretty average as German cities go. See Rothenburg for sure - hypertouristed but very unique. And if you want a really lovely, authentic old-world city that survived much of WW II, go to Bamberg! It's just a bit to the northeast. Few tourists, and you can see it on a daytrip from Rothenburg.

Thanks for all your input. I worked in Cambridge MA (Harvard, MIT) for many years and know what a college town is like...and I like the atmosphere to live in, but not necessarily to visit. It has plusses and minuses. I am leaning towards Rothenburg...we deal with tourists here at times and know that if you go a block or two away from the bigger sites, you get more of a taste of the real town and its' people. I may leave early and just stopy by H. ....there is something about the view of the city/castle from the river that is enticing. I just don't know if it is someplace I want to spend an extra day in since my time is so limited. I just like the way that R is set up...it is the original footprint of the town and many of the older buildings.
By the way, I was not happy to see so many of the chain restaurants when I was there before. My husband and I were stunned when I saw a Subway across the street from my father-in-laws former restaurants' address. But they would not be there if people did not want/use them(I have to say a Burger King saved me when we found one 2 years ago...not the food, but you always know there will be a clean restroom. Personally, when I go someplace I want authentic food/rooms....why go anywhere otherwise? Go to Disney!